LEGO® sets are not cheap toys. They are made to the highest standards and have the price to go along with it. However, in the past couple decades it seems that the price of LEGO sets has become outrageous. New sets can sell for up to $500 retail and old sets can sell for twice that in a secondary market. This is a children’s toy, right? There is no way LEGO sets have always been this expensive; it is just molded plastic. Let’s take a look at the history of LEGO pricing and try to figure out what is going on.
If Perceptor gave out the right amount of an antidote, the poisoned Autobots were cured. Optimus ordered his troops to ready themselves for the incoming squadron of Decepticons. Perceptor’s antidote did have a side-effect on the Autobots, however; it gave them a fierce battle-fever, making them eager to take on the Decepticons head-on. Prowl suggested to Optimus that they instead opt for a more conniving counterstrike against the Decepticons, and ambush them instead.

Released to conclude the 10th Anniversary of the live-action film series, Masterpiece Movie Series Optimus Prime is a brand new mold that transforms from a 25cm-tall robot (a little taller than MP10 Convoy) resembling how the character appeared in the first live action movie into a Kenworth W900 modified Peterbilt 379, with many of the engineering cues being distinctively based and improved on the ROTF Leader Class mold. His transformation takes a whooping 43 steps, making it one of the most complex Masterpiece figures to date! (Although this pales in comparison to MP-36 Megatron's 107 steps.) .

Optimus had Bumblebee and Huffer plant false information to mislead the Decepticons. As the Autobots were in need of a new power source, he sent Cliffjumper to find Doctor Heath Blaisedale and had to apologize to the doctor after Cliffjumper kidnapped her. Persuading her to help them, the Autobots traveled to the solar plant to make use of her solar reactor, only to find the Decepticons were already planning to attack it. While the other Autobots re-energized, Optimus protected them from an attack by Starscream, Thundercracker and Skywarp. Ravage abducted Blaisedale as a diversion, forcing Optimus to lead a team and rescue her. When the team returned, the plant was already under attack and Optimus helped the Dinobots drive them off. Unfortunately the Dinobots totaled the plant in the process, and Optimus promised Blaisedale the Autobots would help her rebuild. In return, Blaisedale organized a meeting with the President of the United States so the Autobots could forge an alliance. Sun Raid (Listen 'n Fun)
Another thing different now from when I was a kid (70s/80s) is that the sets contain much fewer basic bricks. It seems the models are made out of all these exotic specialized pieces which are less useful for general building. Is this a business strategy to sell more sets by reducing the reusability, a marketing ploy to sell more pieces by making every set include unique collectable parts, or just trying to make the models look more realistic/slick? I think Lego was more fun when the majority of bricks were basic.
The second Nightwatch Optimus Prime was released as part of the "AllSpark Power" second half of the Movie line. He is similar to the UK version of Nightwatch Prime, replacing most of his red and blue with different shades of blue and black, retaining his resemblance to Diaclone Powered Convoy in most respects. However, the subdued black and copper on the first Nightwatch Prime have been replaced with gold and a very bright blue, to signify the All Spark energy affecting the Transformers. The translucent parts were also cast in purple translucent plastic instead of black translucent plastic.
Optimus Prime Special Color (オプティマスプライムクリアVer, Optimus Prime Clear Ver) was only available blindpacked as part of TakaraTomy's EZ Collection Vol. 3. It is a clear version of the Revenge of the Fallen mold, casted in (entirely colorless) clear plastic with opaque paint operations (which is the same paint mask from the original Legends Class toy albeit slightly darker) on the details. This redeco also uses the slightly small fuel tank/elbow tabs from the Battle Damaged release.
His trailer opens up into his Combat Deck, which features a missile-armed repair drone pod (with seating for one) mounted upon a boom lift arm. Situated in the base of this boom is a spring-loaded launcher that can be used to launch Roller out of the Combat Deck. Roller himself has seating for 4 passengers, and can be equipped to carry Optimus Prime's rifle or a fuel pump. The interior space of the trailer allows storage room for one Autobot car.
Forming a roughly 11-inch figure when fully assembled, Diablock Convoy is highly articulated, save for his head, which is only able to move up and down. Said head is also by far the most stylised aspect of the figure, with no real attempt to approximate Prime's face or mouthplate, instead featuring only a reversed block that gives the odd impression of a cycloptic eye. It is possibly intended to actually represent his forehead grill, as a yellow block inside his head construction remains barely-visible through a slit in his face, possibly intended to represent the classic toy's yellow eyes.

The Beast Wars raged on prehistoric Earth, eventually leading to the discovery of the buried Ark sometime after its crash on prehistoric Earth. Megatron, following his namesake's instructions in a desperate gambit, decided to attempt to change history by killing Prime, who was still lying in the Ark in stasis lock. Megatron hoped that this would result in the Decepticons winning the Great War and eventually Predacon control of Cybertron. Megatron unleashed a full-power weapon blast at Optimus Prime's face, near-fatally injuring him. The Agenda (Part III) However, Optimus Primal proceeded to take Prime's spark into his body to protect it from surgical trauma while his injuries were repaired. The subsequent power increase caused by Prime's spark's connection to the Matrix mutated Primal into a large, Transmetal "Optimal Optimus" form. Then, with the repairs complete, Prime's spark was restored, and he briefly activated before sinking back into normal stasis. Optimal Situation

A (technically) unreleased "black" redeco of Henkei Voyager-sized Convoy using the same plastic layout and paint mask but replacing red and blue with black, silver with gray, leaving the previously vacuum-metalized grill/fender area unpainted, changing the blue tint for the windows to red and changing all silver and yellow paint operations to blue. The red Autobot insignias would have remained unchanged.[7]

Optimus Prime is usually depicted as being a member of an ancient Transformers race called the Dynasty of Primes, often receiving the title "The Last Prime" in many stories, in which he is depicted as being the last of the Primes. In the Transformers: Covenant of Primus, it was established that Optimus Prime was the last born of the original Thirteen Transformers. It was his unique spark and his inspiring reassurance that "All are One" that allowed the Primes to rally and succeed in their battle against the Chaos Bringer Unicron. When tragedy at last ended the era of the Primes and brought forth the new race of lesser descendant Transformers he alone chose to be reborn in the Well of All Sparks as one of them, that he might know them and their needs more completely. All memory of his past life gone, he took the name "Orion Pax" and sought his way like any other robot on the new world becoming Optimus Prime once more when receiving the Matrix of Leadership when Cybertron faced a new enemy in his former friend, Megatron and his army of followers, the Decepticons. This brings a Great War to their planet of Cybertron. Optimus's origins and personality can vary depending on which "universe" he's seen in. This origin is the most consistent between the various incarnations. Further differences are listed in the respective sections below.
When the Ark's sensors picked up two Transformer power emissions in the Brazilian rain forest of non-Decepticon origin, Optimus headed into the field to investigate, bringing along Jazz and Blaze. Though their search went poorly at first, the surrounding vegetation interfering with their energy trackers, one of the mystery Transformers soon found them! The source of the readings turned out to be two terrifying robot dinosaurs! As Optimus charged one of them, Megatron and his troops turned up, and blasted the Autobot leader unconscious. He awoke to find the Decepticons fleeing in defeat, and the creatures transformed into their Autobot forms. Grimlock introduced himself and Snarl, but told Optimus that they wouldn't be following the Autobots back to home-base, as they had two more companions to unearth first. Optimus bid him farewell with a handshake before leaving to carry on the war against Megatron. The Dinobots!

He and Metroplex were soon rescued by Bumblebee and Ratchet and they promptly escaped back to Earth, just in time to rescue Grimlock from a Decepticon hit squad. After being misled by a phony distress call, Optimus and his team had to face an assault on the Ark. They repelled the Decepticon attack, but Prime decided that the time was right to go to Cybertron and liberate the Autobots whom Shockwave had enslaved. The Autobots again used the space bridge to reach Cybertron, and mounted an assault of their own on the Decepticon fortress. After fighting their way through the defenses, Optimus and Bumblebee faced down Shockwave himself, defeating the Decepticon with some help from Grimlock. Transformers G1: Awakening

Hot Rod then fought in the battle of Autobot City and saved the city for if he had not attacked Megatron, he would have destroyed it. Due to his attempted intervention in the epic battle between the Autobot leader, Optimus Prime and the Decepticon leader, Megatron, Prime was lethally injured. Before he died, the Matrix got passed on to the Autobot Ultra Magnus, whom he referred to as "old friend", despite protestations.

In the grand Optimus tradition, the cab of Laser Optimus Prime disconnects to become the highly poseable robot mode of Prime himself. Like Powermaster Prime and Hero Prime, the toy features the iconic windshield pecs and grill abs, despite not actually being formed from the actual truck components they emulate. In robot mode, pressing the button on Prime's cab (now on his back) activates a red LED in his right fist which illuminates his clear-plastic sword (which stores beneath his legs in truck mode).

When Bumblebee, Hound and Spike brought a badly-damaged Starscream back to the Ark, Optimus struggled with the ethical implications of allowing Wheeljack and Ratchet to mess with the Decepticon's logic circuits, but gave them the go ahead. Starscream proved to be amnesic, and Optimus was able to take the opportunity to help him as much as possible, even physically preventing Megatron from retrieving his former lieutenant when Starscream opted to stay with the Autobots. Though Starscream left as soon as he regained his memory, Prime reflected that they'd learned that maybe it was possible to reason with a Decepticon. Redemption Center

Classics Optimus Prime was initially intended to be Deluxe-sized. An alleged list of the tentative Classics line-up[20] included a Deluxe-sized Optimus Prime without a trailer and a version with a trailer at the Voyager price point; however, it appears the decision was eventually made to upscale Optimus to Voyager size instead.[21] Don Figueroa's control drawings for the Deluxe version were leaked before the Classics line was even released at retail.[22] A gray model prototype was later shown as part of an interview with TakaraTomy's staff in Transformers Generations 2009 vol. 1.[23] It's unclear whether the trailer ever made it past the early planning stage before the size of the figure was changed.
Prime: First Edition Matrix of Leadership Optimus Prime converts from robot mode to his truck mode. He comes with a gun than he can wield with his hands, as well as peg onto his hitch in vehicle mode, with different pegs for either configuration. Similar to a previous Optimus Prime toy, he features some faux-kibble in the form of his actual windshield chest being covered by sculpted panels featuring his characteristic windshield-chest. His arms are slightly longer than his original design's arms.
This Micron-covered "Ultimate Mode" for Arms Master Optimus was shown in the Cybertron Satellite segment of "Sealed Transformation! The Mystery of Orion Pax". He wears the Matrix on his chest with Balo, Balo G, R.A. and Shining R.A. attached to it, Zori M on his back, Jida R and Igu on his right shoulder, Jida and Noji on his left shoulder, B.H. and C.L. on his right arm, B.H. B and C.L. GR on his left arm, Gora on his right hip and Gora II on his left, B.2 and Shining O.P. on his right leg, and Shining B.2 and O.P. on his left leg. Finally, he wields the Cosmotector and Dark Matter Calibur in his hands. Phew!
Alternatively, if Optimus chose to use the tainted fuel against the Decepticons, he ordered Grapple to carry out the vat outside of headquarters. He then instructed Grapple to lower the vat into a nearby pit, and instructed Jazz to torch the fuel with his flamethrower. He and Jazz waited until the last possible moment to carry out their plan, and once the fuel was lit, they dived to safety inside the Autobot base with the other Autobots. As the toxic cloud successfully turned away the Decepticons, Optimus was surprised to see Sunstreaker once more fully operational. Having been bought enough time, Perceptor was able to successfully cure the poisoned Autobots. Their ranks fully replenished and the Decepticons turning tail meant the Autobots had earned themselves another victory.

For the Generation 2 toy line, the original Optimus Prime toy was altered somewhat and an electronic sound maker was added.[24] Later Generation 2 toys of Optimus were completely new designs, such as Combat Hero Optimus Prime, Laser Optimus Prime, and Gobot Optimus Prime, who could become a red Lamborghini car. In 2003, Takara introduced the Masterpiece MP-01 Convoy/Optimus Prime. While retaining the original concept of a transforming semi-trailer truck, this die-cast figure incorporated modern toy manufacturing techniques for improved detail and articulation, while, at the same time, captured the look of the cartoon character. It has since been released by both Hasbro and Takara Tomy in different variations. In 2010, a version of the Masterpiece toy, called Masterpiece Convoy Sleep Mode, was released, painted in dark colors to match the appearance of Optimus Prime after his death in the 1986 film.[25] In 2006, Hasbro introduced Alternators Optimus Prime, which turned into a licensed 1:24 scale model Dodge Ram SRT-10.[26] In 2011, Takara Tomy released MP-10 Convoy, a smaller, more show-accurate version of the Masterpiece Optimus Prime figure.[27]

Refractor and Laser Prime were only available in a box set named "Chaos on Velocitron" that includes Dynamus and Quickswitch, Parsec and Autobot Nautica, Fastclash, and a Rodimus Prime Titan Master head. The set was officially announced by Hasbro to be a Toys"R"Us exclusive, and was sold at stores in the United States, Canada, and Hasbro's Asian markets (such as Malaysia, Singapore, and Hong Kong). Despite this, it later became available via Amazon in the United States (but not in Canada) as well, actually sold by Amazon directly (as compared to a third-party seller).

In Transformers: Decepticons, Optimus Prime lands on Earth along with the other Autobots to stop the Decepticons. Optimus does not appear until Megatron is released and Starscream escapes with the Allspark. Optimus fights Megatron, but is defeated and is killed while Megatron gives chase to his traitorous second-in-command. In the 2009 Revenge of the Fallen video game by Activision, Optimus Prime is among the playable characters.[20]
This is an arbitrary line but it is a line that needed to be drawn. There have been many promotional sets over the years which have very few pieces but carry a higher price because of their promotional status. These can range from keychains to individual minifigs to seasonal items. They are not representative of the typical price of a LEGO brick and therefore should not be included in the evaluation.

"Hero Mashers" Optimus Prime, Bumblebee and Grimlock took on Megatron in the middle of a busy city. Optimus came to Bumblebee's help while riding atop of Grimlock, swapping heads with his mount to bite Megatron's arm off, getting a hold of the Decepticon's jetpack at the same time. He attached both pieces to himself, and flew around for a bit before returning to the battle. He thoroughly scrambled his pieces with those of his teammates, then took down Megatron with his "dino-fist." Afterwards, the Autobots returned to their normal configurations (though it took them more than one try to do so!) Hero Mashers commercial

The Autobots subsequently returned to Cybertron aboard a refueled and repaired Ark with the defeated Decepticons, taking the Decepticons on Cybertron unawares and quickly capturing control Cybertron. Peace reigned for a time until a series of natural disasters began, the source of which was determined to be the planet Moebius in a parallel universe. The Autobots assembled a team to travel to this alternate universe and stop the threat; Optimus Prime personally led the team, unwilling to put anyone in more danger than himself. Wheeljack, Hoist, Jazz, Prowl, and Silverstreak constituted the rest of the team; they dubbed themselves Spy Changers because they aimed to achieve their goal with stealth and diplomacy. The team modified their bodies to match the native cyborgs using data acquired from the Sky Spy and traveled to the 22nd Strata but were soon attacked by the local Guardians, who mistakenly presumed them to be Renegades. The Spy Changers were then rescued by the real Renegades, who presumed them to be potential allies and took them back to their flagship, the Rogue Star. Renegade leader Cy-Kill attempted to court the Spy Changers as allies, but Optimus saw through Cy-Kill's deception. Eventually, the Autobots formed a secret alliance with the Guardians as well as discovered the cause of Cybertron's troubles: Renegade bases on Moebius were draining the planet's energy. The planet's geometry had turned it into a crude Dimensional Interfacer, and Moebius was tapping into Cybertron to sustain itself. Hoist was able to end the crisis by triggering the bases' remote detonation sequence. Cy-Kill was furious, but in the ensuing battle, the Autobot-Guardian alliance triumphed over the Renegades. Optimus Prime and Leader-1 shook hands as a symbol of the transdimensional friendship, and the Autobots returned to their home reality, secure in the knowledge that they had allies in places as distant as alternate realities. Ask Vector Prime, 2015/09/30
Transformers: Energon introduced several new concepts to the toy line. Two new sub-groups, the Omnicons and Terrorcons, joined the fray, representing smaller factions of the Autobots and Decepticons respectively. The smaller toys in these sub-groups came with Energon weapons that could be used by the larger Autobots and Decepticons, along with Energon chips that could be fastened to the larger figures to enhance their power. Energon weapons and chips came in a variety of colors of translucent plastic. Many Autobot figures in the line were able to combine with a partner to form a larger robot through the "Powerlinx" process. The Decepticons were designed instead with alternative "attack modes". While no longer the focus of the line, there were several Mini-Con releases in Energon as well.
A redeco of the Dark of the Moon Deluxe Class toy, this Optimus Prime has large portions of his body, mostly his truck parts, vacuum metallized silver, and his light-piped eyes were neutered by blue paint. He comes with a redeco of Generation 1 Rampage's sword, which can be wield by his 5mm-compatible hands (Although not shown in the instructions). As his body, legs, and front truck kibble were chromed, care must be taken while transforming, especially with the shoulder kibble & the bottom leg's posts (This can be amended if you slightly widen the holes with 3mm hand drills). As with the original Dark of the Moon Deluxe Class figure, the instructions did not mention about forming the sleeper part until step 10, the pinky finger prevented the sword to peg down through his hands, and of course: his truck mode can attach with the Armored Weapons Platform included in the Chronicle or the Movie Trilogy Series figure. This figure has slightly loose shoulder joints.
The DOTM packaging release of this 2-pack features an altered paint application on Optimus Prime's ion blaster/barrage cannon. On the original ROTF packaging release, the slide-out barrel on Prime's blaster is painted silver with a black paint spray app to simulate usage of the weapon, and the exposed inside wall of the gas tank at the top of the blaster is left as unpainted grey plastic (exactly like the blaster on the original single-boxed ROTF Buster Optimus Prime). After receiving numerous reports from customers that the silver paint on the slide-out barrel was easily scraped off by merely transforming it from gas tank to blaster, Takara-Tomy briefly stated in an interview that they had addressed the issue for the Dark of the Moon packaged version by swapping the placement of the silver paint application. Thus, the Dark of the Moon packaged version now features the slide-out barrel on Prime's blaster as unpainted grey plastic with an unchanged black paint spray app to simulate usage of the weapon, and the exposed inside wall of the gas tank at the top of the blaster is now painted silver.
Animated Optimus Prime, in an Earth-based fire truck mode, appears as a hidden character in the Transformers Netjet video game by Hasbro. Instead of being leader of the Autobots, Prime was actually a washout from the Elite Guard. Despite no longer being a member, he maintains his military ranking of "Prime". The scale chart released for the series indicates Optimus Prime stands about 22 feet tall.[13]
If he didn't send Sludge with them, the odds were 2 to 1 that the Autobots would all be destroyed as part of Operation Black Coral. The one possible positive outcome ended with Optimus fighting a duel against Megatron atop Mount Lomas in which Prime (somehow) split into his three components to surround his archenemy. This provoked Rumble into "assisting" his leader with an earthquake that destroyed the Decepticons' entire superfuel operation.
Optimus Prime would also be a major character in Devil's Due Publishing's various G.I. Joe meets the Transformers series. Devil's Due Publishing does not address Prime's early years, save that he survived an assassination attempt by Bludgeon soon after receiving the Matrix. The traditional Ark storyline left the transformers crashed on Earth. In this series, instead of being reactivated by the Ark, the transformers and the ark were discovered by the terrorist organization called Cobra. The transformers inside were reformatted into Cobra vehicles, remotely controlled by the Televipers. Prime was turned into a Cobra Sentry Missile System tank, which was a 1985 Sears store exclusive red repaint of the HISS tank.[14] After an attack on a U.N. summit in Washington D.C., Optimus was able to get a message to Wheeljack, alerting G.I. Joe to where the Cobra base was hidden. Subsequently, he and the other captive Autobots and Decepticons broke free. After the ensuing battle, Optimus fought and defeated his enemy Megatron. After Megatron's defeat, the transformers returned to Cybertron in a second Ark Class vessel, but not before giving their human allies the ability to build and use mecha based on Transformers technology.

A BotCon 2012 exclusive purple redeco of the Deluxe "Generation 2" Optimus Prime figure from the Generations toy line, with the sword's blade molded in clear yellow. Much like the 2008 Voyager figure, this figure has painted-in "battle damage" effects. The right side of the hood has the words, "I shall stand...", while the left side says, "The rest shall fall."

The Japanese version of the toy, named "Optimus Prime Revenge Edition", was exclusively available at Tokyo Toy Show 2009, and later also from e-HOBBY. Despite being sold in Hasbro packaging like the mass retail Revenge toys in Japan (plus the addition of Japanese stickers marking it as a Japanese market release and containing Japanese safety warnings and manufacturer information), it slightly differed from the Hasbro version insofar as it lacked the tampographed kanji lettering.

His main gimmicks, however, are the two large, blue-and-white mini-guns hidden in his back/hood, which can deploy and "weaponize" either mode. When deployed, the mini-guns swing out from his back/hood and spin, while a red LED inside his torso lights up briefly. The mini-guns swing down to the sides of his head in robot mode, and can also be deployed in vehicle mode when one manually opens the grille. Pushing down on the red lever on the center his torso (in either mode) briefly lights up the LED again and swings the mini-guns back into their hiding places.

A retool and repaint, including really shiny chrome, of Revenge of the Fallen Leader class Optimus Prime. In this version, his dark-blue is replaced with a more purplish color and his orange blades have become translucent with some silver. Also, his fuel tanks detach and combine to form his Ion Blaster and his mouth is now visible. Unfourtanetly, all that chrome makes it even harder for him to transform than the last prime. All of these new things make him even more accurate to the movie than his predecessor. Like the picture on the right says, Buster Optimus Prime was rereleased, this time with his mouthplate, in an exclusive set with a redecoed Jetfire.

Transformers: Tribute Optimus Prime is a redeco of the 2007 Leader Class toy, to commemorate the 10th anniversary of the live-action film series. While the deco's paint mask is the same as the said figure, he features a more saturated blue and red, and chromed feet/front grills which was used for the MA-21 redeco, and he also features chrome on both sides of the stomach. While the Hasbro stock photo shows that his feet are slightly mistransformed in robot mode, the Takara stock photos shows his feet correctly flipped out.
Released as part of the Bumblebee Energon Igniter's Speed Series line, this Optimus is a Legends/Legion-sized mold that transforms from robot into a Cab-over truck with the transformation scheme shared with the Transformers (2010) Reveal The Shield Legends Class toy, and he features 3mm compatible hands. Optimus' truck mode can also be attached with the Energon Igniters core, and due to the toy being lightweight, it can propel his vehicle mode forward very quickly, making him a fast-moving truck. Due to its simplified transformation, Optimus' robot shoulder parts ended up sticking out from his truck mode, and his upper cabin panel ends up being integrated with his head. Unlike most Speed Series toys, his Energon Igniter port is ends up under his right foot in robot mode rather than on his knee.
The second Optimus Primal toy was an ape in the Ultra size class. Though the transformation from primate to humanoid was a relatively simplistic one, the toy compensated with more than a fair share of weaponry and action features. A compartment on his right forearm opened to reveal a skull-shaped mace he could hold in his fist. His left forearm could open into a double-barreled missile launcher. On his back were two spring-loaded missile launchers which auto-flipped over each shoulder. By pulling a lever in the center of his back, both arms would either spin at the bicep or bend in and out at the elbow, depending on the placement of notch-buttons located on either bicep. This gimmick was shown to be an effort to simulate a gorilla beating its chest while Optimus was in beast mode, but could also be used in robot mode, making him swing his weapons wildly before himself. And finally, like many first-year Beast Wars toys, a battle mask/"mutant head" could be deployed over his robot head.
Long before the internet came along and ruined life as we knew it, Children amused themselves with the most primitive of toys. At the top of the food chain was the yo-yo. Believed to date back to around 500 B.C. in Greece, and even believed to have been used as a crude weapon in the Philippines, the yo-yo (pronounced yo-yo) made a roaring comeback in the 1920s as a toy, and to a lesser extent as a weapon.
Being only an inch and three quarters half, he is the second smallest transformable movie version of Optimus Prime around, only losing the first spot to the Q-Transformers version. Much like the normal-colors Bumblebee, he was available in both Series 1 and 2 of the line, with no noteworthy changes between releases. Not even their bag codes were altered. Their instruction books were updated to say "Series 2".
In "Prime Target", Lord Cholmondeley, a big game hunter, set his sights on the ultimate trophy, the head of Optimus Prime. In order to lure Optimus in, Cholmondeley captured Tracks, Bumblebee, Jazz, Beachcomber, Grapple, Blaster and Inferno. Windcharger and Huffer were able to avoid being trapped. When Cosmos learned where Cholmondeley was keeping the captured Transformers, Optimus Prime accepted Cholmondeley's challenge to meet him alone. Although interrupted by Astrotrain and Blitzwing's attempt to ally the Decepticons with Cholmondeley, Optimus defeated the big game hunter and freed the Autobots. Cholmondeley and the stolen jet were handed over to the Soviets by the Autobots as punishment for his actions.

Unlike the other Swordbot toys, Optimus Exprime's kabuto helmets form an integral part of one of his alternate modes. The kabuto helmet designed for use with his DaiGekisou combination forms the head of his dragon form, while the kabuto helmet designed for use with his DaiKenzan combination forms the "tail" of the same. He comes with two HUGE swords (with 5mm handles) which can be attached to several places on his kabuto helmets or either alternate form, held separately in his hands, or held both in the same hand (with one held in reverse-grip).

This is not to suggest that specialized pieces are bad. Far from it. LEGO Indiana Jones would never feel real without Indy’s whip; LEGO Board Games would never spring to life without their unique dice. But there’s no denying that specialized pieces are costly to produce, and their proliferation was a prime reason why the LEGO Group’s profits plummeted through much of the 1990s, despite steady sales.
Smallest Transforming Prime was redecoed the following year for the second wave of the line, into a color scheme based on his Generation 1 cartoon appearance featuring brighter reds and blues, white thighs, yellow details on his bumper, and blue eyes and windows. This version of the figure was made available for a second time in the next wave ("Wave 2.5"), with a new anime-decorated version of the Combat Deck now available as a rare "chase" figure.

In Titan Magazines' UK Transformers magazine, a comic strip on Optimus Prime, written by Simon Furman, would reveal where he was during the events of Movie Prequel #1. As he carries out his fateful plan to send the Allspark into space, the Autobot base is attacked by one of Megatron's drones with specific orders to kill him. As it locates the Allspark, Prime does the only thing he could think of to prevent it from transmitting its location to Megatron. He transforms into protoform mode and physically rams through it. Recovering in time to see the Allspark blast off, Prime is granted a vision of their war on Earth.

Packed with Ravage, Optimus Prime is one of the first figures in the Transformers segment of the Heroes franchise. As with all Heroes figures, Optimus Prime is a simple, yet well-detailed two-inch tall figurine with exaggerated, cartoony proportions. He is sculpted holding his Ion Blaster rifle in his right fist and his left arm in a pointing pose. He is also love, and demands that you pull his Finger of Doom.

Hot on the heels of their licensing deals with Pepsi and Nike, TakaraTomy got themselves a slice of Apple™ pie and released Convoy —playing iPod speaker— as part of their small, musically-themed Music Label line. This version of Prime is an all-white redeco of the original Generation 1 cab robot, which (much like the "Marine Version" of Prime from the Sports Label line) makes it seem like he ought to be Ultra Magnus. The figure is actually even derived from the retool of the mold created for the original Ultra Magnus figure, as distinguished by the elongated hubcap pegs on the front wheels. Like Pepsi Prime before it, the figure's fists now store in peg holes on the under side of its trailer. The toy lacks any of the original Prime's stickers (even the silver stripe on his chest is now a paint operation) and includes the original thick-barrelled version of Prime's blaster. The toy features a brand new headsculpt based on the 20th Anniversary Prime figure, given additional poseability not previously seen on the figure by being mounted on a ball joint.

The Transformers toyline was created from toy molds mostly produced by Japanese company Takara in the toylines Car-Robots (Diaclone) and Micro Change (Microman). Other toy molds from other companies such as Bandai were used as well. In 1984, Hasbro bought the distribution rights to the molds and rebranded them as the Transformers for distribution in North America. They approached Marvel Comics to create a backstory with names and short descriptions for each character, most of which were written by Bob Budiansky.
An undocumented aspect of his transformation is that his gun, which splits in two halves and secrets inside his kibble when transforming (much like Rattrap's) has two handle pegs on opposite sides, so that it can be held either at its far end or halfway along its length. The former position makes the weapon look (charitably) more like his traditional ion blaster—or Ultra Magnus' rifle. Additionally, the gun halves can be plugged together in two different ways, theoretically allowing you to create an infinitely long weapon (or at least one of ridiculous proportions).
One of the taglines of the Transformers universe is “more than meets the eye.” It’s meant to suggest, of course, that these robots are not just robots; they can turn into vehicles and boomboxes and dinosaurs. But some of the characters themselves tend to be more than meets the eye. In fact, they can become other Transformers. Megatron becomes Galvatron, Orion Pax becomes Optimus Prime, and Bumblebee becomes Goldbug.

Optimus Prime also appears in the text-based fiction Dungeons & Dinobots. He commands the Autobots to attack the Arch-Ayr fuel dump. The attack is thwarted when the main Decepticon forces are augmented by the Mayhem Suppression Squad. When Wheeljack attacks both the Autobots and Decepticons with a massive force of drone Dinobots, Optimus offers to allow the outcast Autobot scientist to rejoin the Autobot ranks if the Dinobots destroy the Decepticons. The Dinobots prove unstable and go on a rampage, attacking everyone, including each other. Optimus punishes Wheeljack by having Ratchet painfully reformat him for Earth mode and assigning him to the Ark repair crew on the advice of Side Burn. He punishes Blurr for allowing his heroic Decepticon cousin, Crasher, part of the Mayhem Suppression Squad, to live. When Grimlock returns to the Autobots, Optimus lets him live because the Dinobot has gained useful intelligence and helps in work on the Ark.

This Japanese exclusive release of Optimus Prime features much more black coloring than the previous releases, and it's (coincidentally) based on the Fast Action Battlers Power Armor Optimus Prime toy, so as to be used with the similarly-repainted Legends Jetfire figure to form the Optimus' powered up combination. For some reason, he has red eyes. This redeco also uses the slightly small fuel tank/elbow tabs from the Battle Damaged release.
"Special Edition" Optimus Prime is a redeco of the Classics multi-pack toy, featuring some minor paint detail changes, bluer translucent plastic, darker and cooler gray plastic, and darker metallic flake red and blue plastic, with his (previously black-only) rifle body most notably now being cast in both blue and black plastic. He came in special "book box" style packaging with black-and-white boxart, and was only available at retail in Australian and Asian markets. North American customers could later buy him via Hasbro Toy Shop.
For some reason: unlike the stock photos (pictured from the right), This Custom Kreon had a slight QC issue to the opaque and transparent helmets: One had two sides sculpted, while the other one has the small flat square sculpt (similar to the details on Hound's helmet) on the right side. Several samples had two different "variants": One with the perfect transparent helmet & a differently-sculpted opaque helmet, while the other one has the opposite. However: later releases fixes the problem by a running change.
China.Org has reported of a potential Beast Wars movie as well as the (still rumored) Optimus Prime movie. Bumblebee movie producer, Lorenzo di Bonaventura was also careful to state that the chances of subsequent movies are riding on the success of Bumblebee at the Box Office. He also mentioned the animated movie was in its writing stage, though with other titles already riding on Bumblebee's success – being in the writing stage doesn't exactly guarantee even the animated movie's - Read More
Optimus and Bumblebee snuck into the Decepticons' base, and found their enemies upgrading themselves with Autobot parts. The pair took offense to this, and Bumblebee set about sabotaging the process. Megatron wound up tripping on some gumballs thanks to the Autobot's mucking about, and Optimus congratulated his fellow Autobot on a prank well done! Intro!
In one possible scenario, Optimus was surprised to see Beachcomber return to Autobot headquarters soon after his departure. Beachcomber informed Optimus that he had uncovered the Decepticon's newest hidden fortress, and he suspected that the Decepticons were up to something big. Optimus sent out Beachcomber once more, this time along with Powerglide and Windcharger to investigate the Decepticons' plot further.
Optimus and Bumblebee snuck into the Decepticons' base, and found their enemies upgrading themselves with Autobot parts. The pair took offense to this, and Bumblebee set about sabotaging the process. Megatron wound up tripping on some gumballs thanks to the Autobot's mucking about, and Optimus congratulated his fellow Autobot on a prank well done! Intro!
A redeco of the Super Optimus Prime mold with a primarily red cab, much deeper blue, and a Prime Force uniformly colored in black was planned to be released with Smallest Transforming Transformers Generation 1 Optimus Prime as a Target exclusive. The toy got far enough along in development to have package artwork created by Dan Khanna, which was later revealed online, but it was canceled shortly before making it to full production. Its red, white, and black coloration earned it the festive nickname of "Santa Prime" among fans online.
Based on the Classics toy line, the Timelines 2007 story is set 15 years after the end of the Marvel Comics story (ignoring all events of the Marvel UK and Generation 2 comics). According to exclusive bio information in the Transformers Collectors' Club magazine #15, Hot Rod followed Optimus Prime back to Cybertron from the Planet Klo. Once back, Hot Rod took up racing, but after a while found it pointless. Optimus Prime assigned to help organize the millions of Cybertronian refugees who returned to their home world. Hot Rod chaired the Cybertron Grand Challenge race, a race which featyred combined Autobot/Decepticon teams. With his maturing Hot Rod changed his name to Rodimus and was chosen to return with Optimus Prime to Earth to stop Megatron. Optimus Prime returned to Earth commanding Bumblebee, Cliffjumper, Grimlock, Jetfire, Mirage and Rodimus. When the Cybertronians Skyfall and Landquake arrive on Earth unexpectedly, Megatron attempts to destroy them, but Optimus Prime and his Autobots are able to drive Megatron away. Rodimus is wounded on a mission with Optimus Prime, before being brought back to the Autobot base.